Maine
Coastal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor
Program No. 21485RJ
Discover the colonial city of Portland, visit Acadia National Park and the renowned works of the Farnsworth Museum, and take a classic schooner sail along the shores of Maine.
Participant Reviews
Based on 42 Reviews
SHOWING
I loved the trip to Coastal Maine! Great overview of the area and a well balanced itinerary.
— Review left October 21, 2025
Jennifer Wheeler was a wonderful group leader. Well organized and thorough. She made the tour great. We got to see and do everything we had hoped for in Maine.
— Review left September 29, 2025
Maine is a wonderful place that you have to see to believe. All I can say is if you haven't been to Maine book this trip! Hopefully you'll get Jennifer Wheeler as your tour guide. She is wonderful.
— Review left September 22, 2025
This would be a great introduction to the lovely state of Maine. Great information for those interested in ships, history and, of course, lobsters.
— Review left September 21, 2025
We learned so much by visiting a part of the country we'd never been to before. And bonus - the learning was fun! A well-balanced array of sights and experiences, shared with fellow travelers who were as engaged as we were. Our third Road Scholar trip. Highly recommend!
— Review left September 2, 2025
What a wonderful trip! Maine is a beautiful and fascinating state, and we learned so much on this trip. The speakers were engaging and very knowledgeable, the local tours were well planned and interesting and every aspect was thoughtfully planned. I couldn't recommend it enough!!
— Review left August 25, 2025
Coastal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor was a great way to see the coast of Maine by land and by water. Speakers and guides were excellent. The program was well-run and provided first-class experiences.
— Review left August 18, 2025
We really enjoyed the Coastal Maine Tour and would highly recommend it.
All aspects of the tour were well organized and communicated
— Review left August 5, 2025
This was my first Road Scholar trip, and it definitely will not be the last since it far exceeded my expectations. The tour leader was amazing. When a flood in a museum we were to visit kept us from that location, she immediately found another experience that everyone enjoyed just as much if not more. The food, the accommodations, the transportation, and the interactions with other participants were amazing! Keep up the good work!
— Review left August 4, 2025
The Road Scholar trip to Maine (Portland, Camden, Bar Harbor & Acadia National Park) is a "must see and experience trip" for everyone who is interested in learning more about the early history and development of our great nation!
— Review left July 26, 2025
Vegetarian means no meat or items cooked on a flat to with meat. No one seemed to understand that and thus at two hotels, there was no breakfast for us.
— Review left July 22, 2025
Good sampling of what's in the area from Portland to Bar Harbor. Enough to whet the appetite for further exploration later.
— Review left July 12, 2025
Great trip and I'd highly recommend it, but it could be improved if the first hotel was in downtown Portland instead of out by the airport. There's nothing else around it, no restaurants or retail, and it's an expensive Uber rider from downtown. If you come in a day or two early it's worth it to stay in a hotel downtown and then move out to the Hilton when the your tour actually starts.
— Review left June 24, 2025
This was a very interesting program from the perspective of history, scenery, and nature.
— Review left June 23, 2025
The Coastal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor provided an excellent opportunity to see and to learn about Maine. I highly encourage anyone who is interested in participating in this adventure to do so.
— Review left June 22, 2025
A fun and educational trip I thoroughly enjoyed. The activities and accommodations were vetted well.
— Review left June 21, 2025
We really enjoyed our Road Scholar Costal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor trip. Our guide and various instructors were very knowledgeable and friendly. We feel that our Road Scholar trips totally enrich our understanding and experiences with lobster, sailing and history of Maine. We plan to continue Road Scholar adventures for many years to come. Chris & Dale, Madison, WI
— Review left October 9, 2024
Overall great trip!
— Review left September 23, 2024
The trip was well organized in an educational and fun way. I will definitely travel again with Road Scholar!!
— Review left September 3, 2024
Our Road Scholar trip was everything we expected it to be. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip, meeting new people and participating in all the activities.
— Review left September 3, 2024
Be prepared for inclement weather
— Review left July 27, 2024
Informative speakers, Fun boat rides, beautiful area to visit.
— Review left July 22, 2024
This program is a very good introduction to the past and present impact of the maritime industry to coastal Maine. Each of the field trips were important in learning about the area visited. Old Port is a great destination itself. Suggest arriving early and spending more time there.
— Review left June 22, 2024
Coastal Maine was a wonderful program. Everything was top notch! The places we visited, the speakers we had, the hotel accommodations were good, but probably the best part was our fearless leader, Nancy. My husband and I have been on many Road Scholar programs and she ranks right up near the top! Thank you, Nancy and thanks to our fellow travelers and I can't forget our bus driver, Don who got us where we had to be in plenty of time!
Miles and MaryAnn V
*****
WI
— Review left November 8, 2023
This program is a leisurely overview of coastal Maine and its transformation from its past fishermen' way of life to a more tourist oriented economy.
— Review left November 1, 2023
Stunning scenery, exceptional speakers, warm and delightful fellow road scholars. Top stars in all categories.
— Review left October 30, 2023
Beautiful scenery, fun activities, delicious local cuisine, enlightening lectures--just about the perfect Road Scholar learning adventure!
— Review left October 1, 2023
You know you've always wanted to visit Maine, so don't put it off any longer. Go with Road Scholar and find out what you have been missing in Maine. It is as beautiful as the post cards you've seen.
— Review left July 31, 2023
Go to Maine! If you go, this tour is super.
— Review left July 28, 2023
This program has outstanding variety. From experiencing a working lobster boat, to sailing on a schooner, museums, an art gallery, a great national park, light houses, wonderful accommodations, great food and more! Brian - Fargo, ND.
— Review left June 24, 2023
Excellent program! I found this to be an especially well-organized program with a great variety of topics and experiences. Our presenters were clearly well-versed in their respective areas of expertise and eager to share their knowledge. Of course, the lovely Maine scenery provided a delightful backdrop throughout the program. Since my knowledge of Maine's history was pretty meager at the outset, I learned quite a bit about the State's history, culture and character. Nancy Coolidge, our group leader, was superb; I've met many good group leaders across the 43 programs in which I've participated, and I have to say she ranks at the top.
— Review left October 23, 2022
I highly recommend this trip to anyone who wants to experience Maine. It needs to be on your bucket list
— Review left October 2, 2022
If you have not visited Coastal Maine, take this program. You will learn much about the commerce that established Maine, gain insight into the history of the northeast U.S., and hear about and meet some of the characters that dot the history of Maine.
— Review left August 1, 2022
The Coastal Maine program gives one a complete understanding and appreciation of the region. Visiting Acadia National Park is something to be treasured.
— Review left July 30, 2022
To avoid "burying the lead", I want to say up front that we enjoyed this trip immensely. An opinion unanimously shared to the extent I am aware.
Linda is highly skilled at shepherding the group to arrive on schedule to our many diverse activities. There is a good balance of scheduled events and free time. All tour guides, and especially the lecturers are both entertaining and very knowledgeable. "Lecture" is probably not the best term to use here, because to me a "lecture" implies boring one-way communication, which was not the case. "Educational performance" might be more descriptive.
The very nice weather, and stunning views -- green, green, green, and water, water, everywhere was much appreciated by this resident of the desert southwest (it's 103 F here today.) Portland's, Camden's, and Bar Harbor's wonderful residential architecture reflects popular summertime getaways for the immensely wealthy society of the turn of the century.
Portland restaurants are foodie worthy. For expedient faster service, some included meals involved making selections from a limited menu in advance, though the available variety of choices was at least adequate. Of course, by the time we arrived, we had often forgotten which items we had preordered. Linda always had the record of our choices available as convenient reminders.
Tips for all tours and included meals were covered, so unless you get carried away with souvenir shopping, you need not bring a lot of cash. Camera, yes. Cash, not so much.
— Review left July 19, 2022
My husband and I just just got back from a week in Maine. What a wonderful experience! We went on a lobster boat, a schooner, museums and tours of the cities we visited- Portland, Camden and Bar Harbor. We also visited Rockland. Our leader, Nancy was knowledgeable and friendly. We met some very interesting people from all over. We had a great time! Can’t wait to plan our next Road Scholar adventure!
— Review left June 18, 2022
Coastal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor, October 16-22, 2021 was an excellent tour. Our group leader, Nancy Coolidge, was conscientious and solicitous of all. Group size was small. The hotels and meals were outstanding and gave many opportunities to enjoy Maine seafood. All of the lecturers were knowledgeable and entertaining and we had a wealth of "down east" experiences: cruises on a lobster boat and a schooner, two different maritime museums, a museum featuring the three Wyeth's, and enough free time to enjoy nature, explore Portland, Camden, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, and even The Portland Museum. There is some walking but this is not a strenuous trip I highly recommend it.
— Review left October 23, 2021
Make sure that people are aware of any new eligibility for travel....not just older people (Elderhostel) and that single people will fit right in and do not have to room with a stranger and that the fee for a single room is minimal!
— Review left September 21, 2021
If you are interested in Maine and what makes its inhabitants tick, this program will be great for you. Lobsters, sailing history, and the coastal landscapes are wonderful.
— Review left August 29, 2021
My wife and I recently completed the Coastal Maine program and enjoyed the experience immensely. The trip was carefully organized, very educational, scenic and overall, very enjoyable. The food was great too.
— Review left August 6, 2021
The program Coastal Maine: Portland to Bar Harbor was enjoyable and informative.
— Review left July 17, 2021
This was a wonderful trip, greatly enhanced by Gayle Felix as our guide.
We met some fabulous people and learned a great deal about lobster fishing. Scenery was spectacular. The itinerary was extremely well planned with no glitches.
— Review left October 25, 2019